I do not know how many times I have already said that the Apple Watch is for me, perhaps the best device of the American brand. It is, at least in terms of flexibility. That is, a product that was launched with an intention and has evolved into something more complex and much more useful. We have gone from being able to read messages or answer calls to being monitored and save our lives thanks to its sensors. Therefore, they want to go one step further and that be able to measure blood pressure. At least this is what this patent reveals.
A new patent application, published recently show a wearable device, potentially paired with an Apple Watch, which might be able to monitor a user's blood pressure without the need for any additional peripherals. This could allow users to measure their blood pressure using neutral networks and seismocardiogram data, without the need for a blood pressure cuff. Amazing!
Un Incidentally: Do you know, can you get an idea of what it could mean when this system is well implemented? In other words, imagine for a moment that, like in the United States, we are connected to our doctors through digital platforms. The results of these measurements are uploaded automatically and as long as there is no news, they are saved. But if there is any irregularity, a warning would jump to the doctor who could review the entire history and make a preventive decision. Preventive, which is the magic word in most of our lives, but in health it takes on much more importance.
We With the news:
The patent application, entitled "Interpretable neural networks for blood pressure estimation without a cuff«. Explore the use of neural networks to estimate blood pressure using seismocardiogram data. Unlike an electrocardiogram, which relies on electrical signals to monitor a heart rate, a seismocardiogram measures the micro-vibrations produced by the heartbeat.
There are devices for seismocardiogram small enough to be considered portable. Although these sensitive systems are typically placed on the sternum of a user to measure tiny vibrations at or near the heart. The way in which Apple intends to implement such a device was not covered in the patent application.
In the application it is mentioned that the activity levels of one or more filters of a first neural network could be determined. Calculate the relevance of each one or more filters of a first neural network based on the activity levels of those filters. Then a second neural network would be built by modifying the first. In this way, the second data obtained could be analyzed. It would take advantage of an individually pruned neutral network accepting a seismocardiogram as input. That neural network would use the data to estimate blood pressure.
We may never see this device on the market or we may
Keep in mind that we talk about patents and therefore it is likely that we will never see this device on the market. In fact, it has a good chance that if we see it, it will take us many years to see them. Unless Apple wants to speed up the process imminently, which I doubt by the way, mostly because the idea is already a couple of years old. But by not having presented in the application the form and place where that device would be attached to the Apple Watch, it makes me think that they still have all the ends tied up.
I hope they get it, because I really think that the most important thing we have is health and we must take care of it. Without it we will not be able to do other things and I refer to the tests of what is happening worldwide due to the pandemic caused by the Coronavirus. With the versatility of the Apple Watch, important medical advances could be achieved, at least in the field of individual measurements, always bearing in mind, of course, that their interpretations must be carried out by professionals.
